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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

The Pirate Hunter of the Caribbean provides a useful overview of Britain's role in piracy and privateering during 1700 - 1730, the Golden Age of Piracy. However, I was surprised to discover that Woodes Rogers, the primary subject according to the title, only makes sporadic, cameo appearances throughout this work. Since Rogers is what is advertised, that makes the book a bit disappointing.

The first half of the book occurs during the War of Spanish Succession and focuses on the circumnavigation voyage Rogers executed as a privateer. There is interesting background information on the state of exploration of the Pacific Ocean, Spain's shipping between the Philippines Islands and Acapulco, Mexico and the rescue of Alexander Selkirk (of Robinson Crusoe fame) from a four year exile on the Juan Fernandez Islands off Chile's coast. But the focus here is generic to the cruise, not specific to Rogers. I found this disconcerting especially since Rogers was remarkable captain, one of only a handful of British officers of his time to circumnavigate the earth. How could the author effectively eliminate him from a 100+ page discussion of his incredible accomplishment?

The second half of the book starts with Rogers' activities as Governor of the Bahamas. After good coverage of Rogers role in eliminating pirates from Nassau, Rogers again evaporates and the focus shifts to recounting vignettes about a variety of pirates and naval operations that simply had no relationship with Rogers. To be fair, during this period of Rogers life Britain began a serious crackdown on pirates.Read more ›

If you would like to read a book which explodes with action and adventures on literally every page of it, please buy this book.I admit that my area of interest is not about the history of piracy. Far from it. But I decided to read a book on a different matter, for a change. My only regret is that it is too short, but I intend to re-read it very soon.So, what about our pirates? Names such as Ben Hornigold, Sam Bellamy and Edward Teach, otherwise known as Blackbeard populate the so-called Golden Age of Piracy. It was, in the words of Mr. Cordingly, a world whose nucleus had "loose and disorderly people" which produced a generation of pirates whose operations extended from the Caribbean to the east coast of North America and across the Atlantic to the slave ports of West Africa and beyond to the Indian Ocean.Then there was an explosion of piracy after the signing of the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, which was responsible for the reduction of the size of the main maritime navies. "This threw thousands of redundant sailors on to the streets", and, because they were unable to find work elsewhere, these men (definitely not all of them) turned to piracy.Enter Woodes Rogers, who, in the middle of Britain's war with Spain, was hired to lead a mission against Spanish targets in the Pacific. He was married to Sarah and they had three children and he left Bristol in 1708, first to the South-Seas, "thence to the East -Indies,and homewards by the Cape of Good Hope". He returned to Britain after three years and the first half of the book describes the many adventures and ordeals Rogers went through together with his other fellows.Read more ›

I got this for a friend who loves reading about sea history and does NOT like pirates. He's likely heard, and read, about Captain Rogers and I hope he likes this book. I like sea tales, which is why I blindly gave it 4 stars. Rad.

This book has plenty of them who were extant during the harrowing "Golden Age of Piracy" in the Caribbean. Many of the famous and most brutal of them, such aBlackbeard. Charles Vane, Calico Jack Rackham, and many, many more.